​Ex-Rikers Island guard jailed for 5yrs over inmate death

A former guard at the notorious Rikers Island jail has received a five-year prison sentence for depriving an inmate of his civil rights. The guard failed to help the prisoner after he swallowed toxic detergent.

According to court
papers, former Department of Correction Capt. Terrence
Pendergrass was told by other correction officers that inmate
Jason Echevarria, 25, had swallowed the highly toxic detergent,
known as a soap ball, while in solitary confinement in
2012.

But Pendergrass, 51, reportedly told the officers he didn't want
to be bothered unless there was a “dead body” in the
cell.

Later that day, a pharmacy technician expressed concern that
Echevarria might die. However, the guard again refused to seek
assistance. When an officer picked up the phone to call for help,
the Pendergrass ordered that he hang up, prosecutors said.

Echevarria was found dead the next
morning. The city medical examiner concluded that he died from
ingesting the substance, and that he had internal chemical burns
and scarring along his esophagus and into his trachea.

The inmate was known to be mentally ill, suffering from bipolar
disorder. He was housed in the solitary unit following previous
suicide attempts. Echevarria's family has filed a civil lawsuit
against New York City over his death.

"A man died here, a 25-year-old man, because of your
indifference and callousness," US District Judge Ronnie
Abrams said as she imposed the sentence Thursday.

"Such criminal indifference will not be tolerated," she
added.

The judge said the five-year sentence was meant to be a deterrent
to others, so that guards understand they will be held
responsible for wrongdoing. The punishment is significantly
longer than the roughly two-year sentence suggested by federal
guidelines.

Prosecutors had asked for a substantial punishment, saying in
court papers that the former guard's crime was “particularly
cruel.”

But defense attorney James G. Frankie wrote that Pendergrass had
no reason to believe reports that Echevarria had swallowed the
detergent, as he was not authorized to have a soap ball in the
first place.

Frankie added that the claim seemed
“more consistent with malingering to get out of a cell rather
than a genuine call for medical assistance."

Pendergrass was found guilty in December, and was given a fine of
$5,000. He was due to be sentenced on May 21, but that sentencing
was delayed after he made a last-minute claim that his former
attorney's representation had been insufficient.

The former guard was told he could report to prison on August 18,
as he has reliably shown up for all court appearances.

The sentencing comes just one week after three Riker's Island
prison workers were arrested and charged over the death of
another inmate. According to the Department of Justice Ronald
Spear died from being brutally beaten, and that prison personnel
then tried to cover it up.

Located in New York City, Riker's Island has been cast in the
spotlight following reports of widespread abuse and corruption.
Three days ago, RT covered the story of Carlos Montero, who was arrested and taken
to Rikers Island when he was 17. Seven years later, he's still
locked up awaiting trial.

In August 2014, the US
attorney's office for the Southern District of New York released
areportdescribing a “deep-seated
culture of violence” against adolescents at the
facility.

One month prior, an investigation was published by The New York
Times which detailed 129 cases of inmates who were seriously
injured in altercations with correction officers in 2013. It
showed that mentally ill inmates bore the brunt of that violence.